Self-admitted 'bandwagon fan' Drew Smyly will be rooting for LeBron James, Miami Heat in Game 7

Michigan Live | Jun 20

Drew Smyly is a pretty quiet guy. But if you want to get him fired up, just ask him a question about his favorite NBA team.Smyly is a huge fan of LeBron James and the Miami Heat.

"I'm a bandwagon fan," Smyly said. "I like the Heat. I love LeBron. I've always liked (Dwyane) Wade. They've got something special, so why not cheer for them? Why not root to see something that you might not get to see for a while? I like to root for the dynasty."

There was plenty of talk in the clubhouse Wednesday after Game 6 of the NBA Finals went to overtime Tuesday night, with the Heat winning to force Game 7. It's extremely likely that several Tigers players, including Smyly, will watch the rest of Game tonight after the Tigers complete the opener of their four-game series against the Boston Red Sox.

Smyly takes his share of heat from his followers on Twitter when he Tweets about the Heat, but he said there are a lot of Heat fans in the clubhouse. Miguel Cabrera is another big fan of the team.

Smyly defended himself for backing the Heat by pointing out that there is no NBA team in his home state of Arkansas, although it is worth mentioning that the Grizzlies play just two hours east of Little Rock in Memphis, Tenn.

"I can get a little bit of a bye, because I don't even have a pro team in Arkansas," Smyly said. "We don't have any pro teams. I'm allowed to pick and choose."

Smyly said he's been a fan of James since his days in Cleveland and started backing Miami when LeBron went there.

"I've always been a big LeBron fan," Smyly said. "He's just a freak, you know? I know a lot of people hate him for whatever reasons, 'The Decision' or whatever. I love watching him play. I root for him. I want him to win six championships."

Smyly said he thinks James is the best player of all time and gets tired of baseball fans judging players based on how many rings they have won.

"That's why I want him to win all the rings, so no one can use that argument," he said. "I hate when people are like, 'Oh, where's his six championships? He's no Michael (Jordan).' So if he has it, I'll be able to say, 'What can you say now? He's the best player ever.'